Udinese and Bologna have a go at the big boys

MILAN, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Udinese's title credentials receive their toughest test yet at Serie A champions Inter Milan when Sinisa Mihajlovic takes charge of Bologna for the first time against fellow strugglers AS Roma (1400 GMT).

Udinese, joint second with Inter and a point behind leaders
AC Milan, have threatened the dominance of Italy's big clubs
this term.

The modest club from the north-eastern town of Udine,
seventh last season under highly rated coach Pasquale Marino,
battled back for a 2-2 draw against Genoa last weekend after
starting with Italy forward Antonio Di Natale on the bench.

He will miss Thursday's UEFA Cup match in Spartak Moscow
with a fever but could return to face Inter on Sunday (1400).

"We will think about Inter on Friday," Marino told
reporters, denying he was resting Di Natale for the Inter game.

Jose Mourinho's Inter are on a patchy run, with a dreadful
defensive display from Nicolas Burdisso on Tuesday leading to a
3-3 Champions League draw at Anorthosis Famagusta.

They have drawn two of their last three league games and
beat Reggina 3-2 on Saturday only through a stoppage time goal.

Burdisso could pay the price for Tuesday's calamities and be
dropped for the Udinese clash while striker Adriano is hoping to
be included having been left out recently for indiscipline.

At the other end, Bologna host Roma on Saturday (1930) with
the two sides on the back of vastly contrasting results.

Second to bottom Bologna lost 5-1 at Cagliari last Sunday
which prompted coach Daniele Arrigoni's sacking and the
appointment of Serbia's former Inter assistant manager Sinisa
Mihajlovic.

Roma, last season's runners-up, lost 2-0 at Juventus last
weekend to lie a point above the drop zone but Tuesday's
stunning 3-1 win over Chelsea in the Champions League with a new
4-4-2 formation has boosted their confidence.

"Now the team can liberate itself and play proper football,"
Roma coach Luciano Spalletti told reporters.

But Mihajlovic, who won the 2000 scudetto with Roma's city
rivals Lazio, was renowned as an ultra-hard competitor while a
player and he will look to put the same steel in his new team.

In other standout matches, Milan travel to Lecce in Sunday's
late game (1930) and Juventus, buoyed by the 2-0 win at Real
Madrid which put them into the Champions League last 16, go to
coach Domenico Di Carlo's new club Chievo (1400).